Tobacco-pipe cleaner.



W. E, ELAM.

TOBACCO PIPE CLEANER.

APPLICATION FILED MAB. 2, 1914.

1,1 03,1 3% ed July 14,1914,

' 1 7 E I 6 W I "\{Kiflfii' J7 r B 31400144 01, WMM fiLOOQ/Q I I? W a of the cleaner.

TOBACCO-PEPE S cificatiou of Letters Intent Application filed Karen 2, 1914i.

Patented July Ml, ilhld.

deriallifo. caress.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM E. Even, a citizen or" the United States, residing at lVashington, in the District of Columbia, have invented certain new and useful lm provements in Tobacco-Pipe Cleaners, of

which the following is a specification, relerence being in% drawing. l he object of this invention 18 to provide tobacco pipes with convenient and effective cleaning and liquid absorbing devices.

I n eneral terms, the invention involves attachin to the removable mouthpiece a spring c eaner adapted to scrape the interior of the stem and remove therefrom any for eign material whenever the scraper or cleaner is withdrawn.

In the accompanying drawings, which show the preferred construction, Figure 1 shows the pipe in'axial section through the bowl and stem. Fig. 2 is a view of the stem cleaner body detached from the pipe and seen in the position it has in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 shows the same cleaner after rotation of Qt)" from the position it has'in Fig. 2. Fig. a

is a perspective view of the cleaner body. 1F ig. 5 is an end view of the cleaner, looking from the bowl in Fig. 1. Fig. 6 shows the opposite end of the cleaner, looking from the stem or mouthpiece end of the pipe. Fig. 7 illustrates a modified working-end portion Fi 8 shows in axial section a second modi cation of the same portion of the cleaner. I

In these views, A represents a suitable pipe bowl, B. its stem, and (3 its detachable mouth iece. The smoke duct D' in the stem is preerably straight, of circular cross-sec tion, larger than in ordinary stems, and

reamed at its outer end to receive the preferably smooth, closely fitting, conical nner end of the mouthpiece. Within the stem passage and preferably extending from the mouthpiece nearly to the bowl cavity, is a spring metal cleaner shown in this instance as having two equal arms or branches E, E fixed to and projecting inwardly from the mouthpiece and each havin at ts free end a semicircular scraper or dis member F, F, approximately perpendicular to the stems axis, the two members together forming a closely fitting diaphragm extending across the smoke passage. To allow smoke to pass the diaphragm, the disk formed by the two members is centrally perforated at G, or, it

had therein to the accompany It is obvious that the e c p g.

preferred, the two parts may be slightly separated as shown at G, Fig. 7, the perforation being then unnecessary. A convenient means for securing these arms to the mouthpiece is shown in Figs. 1, 2, 3, where the arms are the end portions of a single, flat metal strip doubled at the middle to tl-shape and having at the bend a threaded perforation H through which a tubular screw it passes into the mouthpiece, thepassage in the screw registerin in the mouthpiece. With tldis construction, rotation of the mouthpiece in the properdimotion, as in removing or inserting, tends rather to tighten than to loosen the attach.- ment of the cleaner. The means for attaching, may, however be varied, and obviously the use of the invention is not restricted to cases where the mouthpiece is connecte'd to the stem in the manner shown.

The resilient arms or branches of the cleaner are so made that the scraping memhere at their endsspring apart when the cleaner-is detached from the stem, and the scrapers may be integral, as shown, the strip ends being suitably widened and the strip being bent shar ly inward and then doubled back upon itselil a v Between the branches may be placed absorbent material J, preferably so placed that it will not obstruct either end of the cleaner preventing the passage of smoke. Preterably, the branches do not equal in width the space in which they lie in the stem, and it is evident that material placed between them while the cleaner is detached may be. clamped by merely inserting the cleanerfin with the duct the stem and be released automatically whengg;

the cleaner is withdrawn.

members bein' constantly ur ed apart by resiliency, withdrawal of the eaner, by removal of the mouthpiece causes these members to scrape gently the entire interior surface over which they pass and to remove outwardly all matter accumulated therein, whether solid or not, and the members following the reamed surface necessarily clean that portion also. I may use imperforate scraper members, F", F, Fig. 8, in different planes, each extending beyond the edge of its companion, and the upper member preferably extending well down into the lower half of the pass-sage.- Smolce will then be drawn from very nearly the lowermost point of the bowl cavity and will pass below the detachable mouthpiece, of a stem cleaner readily detachable cavity, connected to and yieldingly pressed outward against the thereof and carry out before it any material first member and thence upwardly over the edge of the second member. The scraping in this form will be as in the first case, except that in passing over the reamed surface the slight ap between the two members will be avoide What I claim is:

1. The combination with a pipe having a mouthpiece, of a trans: verse member of a plurality of sections normally lying within the stem near the bowl the mouthpiece and having its margin circumferentially fitting therein.

3. The combination with a pipe having a fixed to the mouthpiece and comprising normally divergent spring arms extending within the stem toward the bowl cavity and terminating in oppositely turned scraper members resiliently pressed against the opposite walls of the smoke duct.

4. The combination with a mo 'thpiece adapted to be detachably connecte with a pipe stem, of a scraping stem cleaner comprising a fiat spring metal strip doubled near its middle, to U-shape, to form two divergent spring arms each terminating at its free end in an approximately semicircular disk adapted to fit half the interior surface of the stem, and a tubular screw passing through the bend in the strip in alinement with the smoke duct in the mouthpiece and fixing the cleaner to the latter.

5. The combination with a pipe having a detachable mouthpiece of normally divergent resilient arms secured to the inner end of the latter, extending within the stem towardthe bowl cavity, and provided with terminal transverse scrapers respectivelytogether fitting approximately the entire peri hery of the smoke passage in the stem.

n testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

v WILLIAM E. ELAM. I

Witnesses:

FRANoIs S. MAGUIRE SAMUEL M. Bnosms. 

